Disruption of healthcare system looms large
South Korea's fight against the new coronavirus is becoming more and more difficult as the epidemic keeps spreading rapidly. The situation appears to have reached a critical point where COVID-19 could be getting out of control.
There are growing worries that the country's healthcare system may start to collapse after the number of confirmed cases surged to 2,337 Friday, the world's largest figure after China. The health authorities are struggling to provide treatment for the soaring number of patients.
In the southeastern city of Daegu with a 2.4 million population, the healthcare system has already been overstretched since the city emerged as a hotbed for the epidemic. The disruption of the system cannot be avoided without radical emergency steps.
A 73-year-old man in Daegu died of the virus Thursday, becoming the 13th fatality. He fell victim to the disease without getting treatment due to a shortage of hospital beds in the city. It is regrettable that the patient died under self-quarantine while waiting to be hospitalized two days after testing positive for the virus.
The problem is that such a death could take place in large numbers, given the poor medical infrastructure there. The city has so far made 1,013 hospital beds available for confirmed coronavirus patients. But, these fall far short of the exploding number of patients which stood at 1,579, accounting for 67 percent of the country's total.
The number of patients is likely to rise further as the infections are closely linked to mass worship services of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, which around 9,000 believers were known to have attended this month. Therefore, pessimism is growing that the authorities might lose their battle with the raging virus.
In this worsening situation, Daegu Mayor Kwon Young-jin has reportedly asked for the central government's support, and cooperation from other municipalities and provinces. But he is finding it difficult to get support good enough to accommodate more patients and bring the epidemic under control.
Kwon requested Gyeonggi Province to provide hospital beds for patients from Daegu. But Governor Lee Jae-myung turned down the request, saying that medical staff and treatment facilities were also insufficient in his province.
Daegu is suffering from an acute lack of doctors, nurses and other medical workers, not to mention hospitals. The central government has dispatched 101 medical staff including 38 doctors and 59 nurses to the city. But more medical professionals are required to deal with the epidemic. A shortage of medical equipment is also serious. Many doctors and nurses are taking care of a flood of new patients, wearing only masks without proper protective equipment.
Now the Moon Jae-in administration should take more radical measures to avoid a looming public health catastrophe. President Moon has vowed to take pre-emptive steps. But he and his government have done little to make good on what he said. It is imperative to reinforce the quarantine network and prevent the disruption of the healthcare system. Mobilize all possible means to protect the people from the relentless virus.
South Korea's fight against the new coronavirus is becoming more and more difficult as the epidemic keeps spreading rapidly. The situation appears to have reached a critical point where COVID-19 could be getting out of control.
There are growing worries that the country's healthcare system may start to collapse after the number of confirmed cases surged to 2,337 Friday, the world's largest figure after China. The health authorities are struggling to provide treatment for the soaring number of patients.
In the southeastern city of Daegu with a 2.4 million population, the healthcare system has already been overstretched since the city emerged as a hotbed for the epidemic. The disruption of the system cannot be avoided without radical emergency steps.
A 73-year-old man in Daegu died of the virus Thursday, becoming the 13th fatality. He fell victim to the disease without getting treatment due to a shortage of hospital beds in the city. It is regrettable that the patient died under self-quarantine while waiting to be hospitalized two days after testing positive for the virus.
The problem is that such a death could take place in large numbers, given the poor medical infrastructure there. The city has so far made 1,013 hospital beds available for confirmed coronavirus patients. But, these fall far short of the exploding number of patients which stood at 1,579, accounting for 67 percent of the country's total.
The number of patients is likely to rise further as the infections are closely linked to mass worship services of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, which around 9,000 believers were known to have attended this month. Therefore, pessimism is growing that the authorities might lose their battle with the raging virus.
In this worsening situation, Daegu Mayor Kwon Young-jin has reportedly asked for the central government's support, and cooperation from other municipalities and provinces. But he is finding it difficult to get support good enough to accommodate more patients and bring the epidemic under control.
Kwon requested Gyeonggi Province to provide hospital beds for patients from Daegu. But Governor Lee Jae-myung turned down the request, saying that medical staff and treatment facilities were also insufficient in his province.
Daegu is suffering from an acute lack of doctors, nurses and other medical workers, not to mention hospitals. The central government has dispatched 101 medical staff including 38 doctors and 59 nurses to the city. But more medical professionals are required to deal with the epidemic. A shortage of medical equipment is also serious. Many doctors and nurses are taking care of a flood of new patients, wearing only masks without proper protective equipment.
Now the Moon Jae-in administration should take more radical measures to avoid a looming public health catastrophe. President Moon has vowed to take pre-emptive steps. But he and his government have done little to make good on what he said. It is imperative to reinforce the quarantine network and prevent the disruption of the healthcare system. Mobilize all possible means to protect the people from the relentless virus.
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